A little over a month ago, Boston’s Kingsley Flood brought their own brand of Americana to the Lovin’ Cup stage. They mostly played material off of their fantastic new EP Colder Still. Live, the band has the ability to match the diversity found on their recordings with multiple instruments finding their ways to many of the members. Strings became horns, rock became roll, America became Mexico. Guitarist George Hall had a Nels-Cline-esque approach to his playing, which added yet another dimension to the live sound. He pushed the boundaries just enough to keep it interesting and yet not pull the band off on wild tangents.
The 6 piece brought a ton of energy and had the crowd on their feet in a dancing frenzy for most of the night. Near the end of the set for the song “Black Boots,” they invited some fans to join them in banging on a metal trash can that was sitting on stage. The can was pristine looking, like they had just purchased it that day. I look forward to seeing them again when the can has shown a bit more wear from the road. Kingsley Flood is a young band that is going to get better with age; I suspect, like Willie Nelson’s guitar, the more beat that garbage can gets, the better they will be.
I knew that I was going to have a hard time with the new grading policy on the site, and so far, my contributions have been tough to stand by: a glowing A+ for Porter Rick’s Biokinetics, GBV gets a C+ because they fail to make another Bee Thousand, Vladislav Delay gets a limp-wristed B for a album that eeked out a par, and I “forgot” to grade a Francisco Lopez album that I forgot to review last year.
I give myself a C for my own work on the blog… if nothing else for my odd refusal to write about something that I genuinely enjoy!
So yeah, Eyvind Kang’s The Narrow Garden is next on my plate. Released on Ipecac, the violinist/multi-instrumentalist/composer who has appeared on albums from Sunn O))), Mr. Bungle/Mike Patton, John Zorn, Animal Collective, Bill Frissell, Laura Veirs, etc. is tough to review.
It’s resistant to obtuse classification, pan-cultural and hectic. There’s a lot more going on than I bargained for, given the simple dissonance of last year’s Visible Breath (which was a great record!) or the exclamation point (!) he added to Alvarius B’s Baroque Primitiva. Think of fellow traveling Master Musicians of Bukkake to get the depth and complexity of sound, while replacing the prog-ier tendencies with a more buoyant approach to melody.
There’s a lot going on The Narrow Garden. Kang enlisted the assistance something like three dozen musicians to round out the record. “Pure Nothing” is jarring because of the inclusion of vocals on a record that I assumed was going to be instrumental following the direction of Visible Breath, but then Kang goes to the dissonant “Usnea,” which is more akin to my expectations of what this record may very well could have been. Then back to the vocal laden “Mineralia” that smacks with an almost Medieval approach to Eastern themes. “Invisis Natalis” is probably the strongest offering on the album. The whole thing is… oddly refreshing. So while my expectations of the record were largely dashed, I am pleased.
It’s hard not to be pleased after listening to any of Kang’s records, regardless of how jarring or puzzling or surprising they turn out to be. But the problem is finding a way to judge it under any grading system. In terms of skill or composition, he’s top notch. In terms of listenability, it pulls you in but you’re not going to want this to be the sound track to a road trip. Is this Abbey Road or Kind of Blue great? Nope! But it is damned good… just impossible to compare to The Men or School of Seven Bells or The Magnetic Fields.
So yeah, I think it’s a B. The Narrow Garden is better than the letter gives it credit for, but this isn’t a record that fuels a mix tape. It’s great music for smart people who like things of import and gravitas… rich mahogany and leather-bound books, perhaps?
Author’s note: If you feel like I flubbed the review, comment and tell me. Was a B a bit of non-committal waffling? It might be an adamant refusal on my part to critically engage with a great record, but I would smile if an Eyvind Kang album could get some creative juices flowing on Tympanogram!
Break It Yourself‘s opening moments leave the listener feeling like they might be jumping into something that has already begun. Like maybe something was missed. I guess if it is your first time hearing Andrew Bird, then you really have missed something. If that is the case then you might be unaware of Bird’s mastery across multiple instruments (both of-man and by-man), but I won’t bother delving into that as it has been well documented; not only in words elsewhere, but also quickly within this album itself. Bird uses his skills to great effect throughout the entire course of the album to bring to life what might be his best collection of songs yet.
It starts strong with “Desperation Breeds…” in which he creates a near duplication of a dentist’s drill with his fiddle. It’s a sound I never would have thought to describe as amazing and gorgeous, yet that is how it sounds here. Such is the magic that Bird is able to conjure again and again in Break It Yourself. There really is not much of drop-off from there. The songs range from good to great and are tied together brilliantly and effortlessly.
The production is also top shelf, bringing out the lushness of the instrumentation (listening on a nice pair of headphones is highly recommended). Every single sound feels like it was placed with great care. A breeze of a listen even at 14 tracks, it makes an hour feel like 15 minutes, a fact which will make it all the more easier to spend time with it again and again. The album almost seems built to be played on repeat, the way it sort of drifts into being and then drifts out with the lulling “Belles.” When you start it up again you’ll realize the only thing you were missing was the end of the beginning.
A synth-pop album vacant of hooks may seem like an oxymoron, but Montreal DJ Claire Boucher has never been one to fit a mold, or follow any set of instructions that have been set before her. Instead, with the limitless possibilities of electronics and the versatility of her own voice, she has created an album in Visions that is a testament to her personal evolution as a musician and the potential for expansiveness in pop music today.
Boucher’s vocals sit in the driver’s seat of her songs as it rides atop synth loops and rhythms, which are heavy on the hip-hop influence. The singing wavers back and forth between an alto falsetto, a breathy exhale soaked in reverb, a soothing yet passionate siren, and little high-pitched hiccups that enunciate the final syllable in some of her lines. It sounds a bit odd on paper, but one of the best qualities of Visions is that Boucher knows just the right time to switch from the high-pitched squeal to the feathered pop-star croon.
The singles we are already familiar with – “Genesis” and “Oblivion” – serve as an excellent dual kickoff to the 48-minute adventure that is Visions. On the former, the bass melodies bounce right along with each beat as synths are stacked on top of one another until the full piece is completed. It’s simplistic in style, but her loops, samples, and atmospheric vocals take the song into a realm full of pep and exuberance.
Where Visions truly shines is when Boucher breaks free from the pop songs and ventures in distorted dimensions. “Eight,” where she matches robotic vocal loops with a falsetto that sounds like it was taken from an anime film and pairs it with a break beat. It’s a short number, but it sets the stage for where she is prepared to take her music. “Visiting Statue” and “Nightmusic (feat. Majical Cloudz)” are the closest she comes to replicating the science-fiction wonderment on “Eight,” but with these two tracks, she keeps the music in darker territories. The thick synths and whispered vocals on “Nightmusic” are akin to those of gothic nightclub, a danceable track that is eerily moody. Quite the juxtaposition, but Boucher makes is work very well.
Boucher’s unique vocals may be the crowning jewel of this album, but it’s not just because of their malleability. Her determination to use them as a multifaceted instrument creates the album highlight on the album’s final full-length track, “Skin.” What begins in similar style to “Oblivion” turns into a slow-burner. She takes her time building the melodies while setting soft vocal chants as the background. When the song’s key and tone take a darker turn, Boucher samples and loops her voice to create a brooding, mind-halting melody that is captivating. It’s a beautiful finish before the outro and an excellent testament to her ability to establish an entrancing mood while using minimal instrumentation.
Visions may be Boucher’s third album, but it is sure to be the one that accentuates her career. She’s been gaining a large amount of attention from online media for this work and rightfully so. In these times where synth-pop is the trendy thing to play, Grimes chucks out the rules. What the listener gains access to is an artist painting an emotional landscape with the tools available to her, and she doesn’t need to get overly complex to accomplish this. Armed with a voice that can stretch the spectrum and the proper electronic equipment, Boucher has the ability to create a style of her own. And Visions is the roadmap for her future.
In my mind there’s truly no better way to be introduced to a band than in an opening slot with no preconceptions. You’ve come expressly to see the headliner, and the opener is just a necessary means on your journey to achieve your musical desire. If they’re bad it can be painful; if they’re good it might at least pass the time. But an unknown opener needs to be be pretty great to completely command your attention, and when they do it comes as a surprise. It’s the unexpectedness that can create a lasting impression and elevate the whole experience: certainly more memorable than being sent a link on Spotify or reading some poor-excuse-for-a writer’s review.
Kent, Ohio-based Bethesda, opening for Kingsley Flood at Lovin’ Cup on Thursday, February 11, had their their guns set to surprise and excite. Starting off their set with their folksiest number of the night, they set up the audience perfectly for what was to come. Announcing: We’re Bethesda, our music may be based in the traditions of folk, but we aren’t going to stop there, and actually we’re not going to stop anywhere. The majority of their music was unpredictable in both style and destination. They didn’t follow the regular verse-chorus-verse song structure, and didn’t give the listener much to latch on to in the way of hooks. In fact, as soon as a riff started to seem familiar, they ripped it from under you and changed direction. Each song was a separate journey with a beginning and end that were two completely different places. Their set was meandering and wonderful and glued together by an arresting frontwoman.
Shanna Delaney was the one constant through it all. Not to dismiss the rest of the band, as each piece was important as the next, but it was Delaney that attracted my attention the most. She has superior vocal range and a stage presence that is mystifying and electric. Aside from her vocal instrument, she also played a tambourine through much of the set. The actual sound from the tambourine didn’t add all that much to the music per se, but how it was played was the key. The energy, it’s highs and lows, could be followed solely from that tambourine. At the close of the set – in a state of pure rock and roll bombast – Delaney dropped to her knees, slamming both the tambourine and her palms wildly on the stage in a move that woke the guitar gods from their slumber. Yes, with a tambourine. Bethesda: surprising to the end.
NOTE: Concerts are in Rochester unless otherwise noted.
2/22: William Fitzsimmons
2/24: Mike Doughty
2/25: Charles Bradley (Buffalo)
2/29: Summer People
3/3: Matthew Good
3/5: Evening Man
3/23: The Men
3/30: tympanogram’s 3rd Birthday with Born Gold, Old Tapes, TBA
4/20: fun.
4/23: Cults (Buffalo)
5/6: Bear In Heaven (Ithaca)
5/7: M83 (Buffalo)
an examination used to test the condition of the middle ear and mobility of the eardrum, and the conduction bones by creating variations of air pressure in the ear canal.
Basically, it sounded like a cool name for a blog intended to be primarily about music. We’d both had other blogs previously, but over beers it was decided that more damage could be done as a joint venture. And here we are.
We share a passion for the undiscovered and under-appreciated, and hope that you’ll be able to find something you love as well.
Disclaimer
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About the Author: Dave
I like music. I can't describe how I came to like the music I do, because I don't know how or why, I just do.
Many years ago, Napoleon's brother, my great-great-great-great-great-great Grandfather, came to America. He was asked his name on Ellis Island while being processed as an immigrant. Not understanding English, he was under the impression that he was being asked how he had arrived in the new land. So he turned around and pointed at the sea vessel and said, 'LaBarge.'
About the Author: Andy
I come by my music taste of my own free will. My friends listened to 2Pac, my parents to contemporary Christian and me? Sunny Day Real Estate. I can’t explain it.
“Music, true music, not just rock ’n’ roll, it chooses you. It lives in your car, or alone, listening to your headphones…” - Lester Bangs
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